BROOKLYN, Mich. — Eddie Cheever got exactly what he wanted out of Tomas Scheckter — a victory.
The rookie won an Indy Racing League race for the first time Sunday in the inaugural Michigan Indy 400. It also was the first victory for Red Bull Cheever Racing this year.
Cheever, who owns the team and drives for it, created waves this week by adding Buddy Rice as a third driver and giving him the crew that was working with Scheckter.
Cheever said it was a tactic designed to push Scheckter to his potential. He entered having led 321 laps this year. But he hadn't won a race — or finished better than fourth — in part because he crashed in five races.
"I wanted the best that Tomas has to offer," Cheever said. "I don't know how he could have done better."
Scheckter wasn't pleased with Cheever's methods, but he suggested they just might have been effective.
"I could have won without the drama of the week, because it hurt me personally, more than anything," Scheckter said. "I'm sitting here with a win now. You know, maybe it was right."
Cheever was convinced.
"It worked," he said with a sly grin.
Scheckter, who had the pole and led for most of the day, overcame a stalled engine in his final pit stop, took the lead on lap 194 and pulled away from a pack late in the race.
Rice, who hadn't driven an IRL car before, finished 1.703 seconds behind Scheckter.
Felipe Giaffone finished third, followed by rookie Tony Renna, who took Al Unser Jr.'s place on the Kelley Racing team because Unser is seeking treatment for alcohol abuse.
Three of the top four were rookies, and Scheckter became the fifth first-time IRL winner this year.
There were nine leaders — with Scheckter leading 24 cars for 122 laps — and 25 lead changes in a race highlighted by a wild finish.
Fans rose to their feet as three-wide and nose-to-tail driving followed a restart on lap 174. There were six lead changes after the restart.
Like the fans, Cheever was forced to watch after crashing on lap 166.
"I was looking in the stands, and there wasn't one person sitting down," Cheever said. "And it was heart-pounding, gut-wrenching open-wheel racing at its best."
Scheckter, Rice and Cheever made IRL history Saturday with their 1-2-3 finish in qualifying. Scheckter and Rice became the first rookies to start a race in the front row and became the first rookies to finish 1-2 since 1996.
But the infighting created more of a buzz than their record-setting days. It also upset Scheckter.
"I'd wake up in the middle of the night and start doing pushups thinking about the race," he said.
Scheckter said he knew what his father — Jody Scheckter, the 1979 Formula One champion — would tell him once they spoke.
"He's going to say, 'About time,' " the 21-year-old driver said.
Gil de Ferran, Helio Castroneves and Sam Hornish Jr. finished fifth, sixth and seventh and maintained their 1-2-3 positions in the IRL standings.
"It's a small step toward the IRL Championship but an important one," de Ferran said.